Downturn spurs young savers into action

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More than half of Britons have refused to let the recession and low interest rates have a negative impact on their savings habits, new research has revealed.

According to Barclays, 17% of people surveyed said they had been saving more during 2009, while 37% said their habits had remained unchanged.

Better paid jobs, reductions in mortgage payments and staying in more often were all amongst the reasons given for being able to put more money away.

Just under a third of people said they were saving less, mainly due to a lack of money, while 14% claimed not to save, either believing it unnecessary or not being disciplined enough to do so.

Encouragingly, it is the younger generation that has been spurred on to increase their savings habit more so than any other age group.

Over two thirds of people aged 16 to 24 have not had their savings impacted, with a quarter of these actually choosing to increase their savings levels.

A culture of 'staying in is the new going out' was found to have been adopted by a greater proportion of this younger age group than by any other.

Andy Gray, head of savings at the bank, said it was clear that the sharp lessons of the recession had not been lost on people.

"We're hopeful that this is an enduring change - the beginnings of a lifetime habit that will help see them through further good and bad times - and perhaps the younger generation who have never really experienced a downturn like this before, are being influenced by older members of their family."